"I would have booed us, too," Romo told The Dallas Morning News. "We deserved it that time. We did not start the game the way we wanted to."

Romo knows the drill. The quarterback wears the target. All the team's woes are heaped upon him, and perspective is tossed out window.

Romo told the newspaper he drowns out the crowd for better or worse, but he praised fans for supporting the Cowboys as they mounted a comeback.

"Obviously, they were great today with the way they brought energy," Romo said. "They helped our defense tremendously. That was as good a home-field crowd as I have been a part of. That's exciting to have that going forward. We just need to do a couple of things better earlier in the football game. We didn't do a good job."

For all of Romo's shortcomings, he never has shied away from the blame. He deserves plenty of it after Sunday night, but also an ounce of credit for being a gentleman with his critics. Or would that be too easy?